Design is becoming a prerequisite for business success, but with a year at a top-flight school like RISD easily costing more than $53,000, that learning doesn't necessarily come cheap. Luckily, education marketplace Skillshare has created a new online school of design with world-class teachers that only costs $20 per class.

Each class is a little different, but they all share the same basic structure. The teacher provides the assignment and some reference materials; students start working on their projects and get feedback from the teacher and their classmates on the project website or through virtual "office hours" handled with video chat, and a final review. There are no grades — the student's portfolio is the only record of quality.

Skillshare first came onto the scene in 2011 with a service to allow teachers to schedule classes in real life. Their online classes launched last August, and the "School of Design" is the most recent effort from the New York City-based team.

"We think creativity and design-thinking drives learning across all disciplines, and is a core value of our community as a whole," says Helena Price, Head of Communications & Partnerships at Skillshare. "That said, the School of Design developed out of both our own inclination to serve the creative community, as well as the fact that the community embraced it so wholeheartedly. Our first super-successful design classes created demand for more and more classes, and thus, the School of Design was born."

Unlike traditional art schools that require professors to have terminal degrees in their field and dedicate the bulk of their time to teaching, Skillshare classes let talented designers fit the occasional class into their schedule.

"It's just kind of assumed that if you can draw you can design a shirt, and it's one of the first jobs a lot of graphic designers get, but there aren't many resources that break down what makes a good or bad shirt," says DeLorenzo. "Just like poster design, painting, or any other art, there are specific rules and standards as well as ways to implement artistic vision."

"Online courses and traditional studio time are two different beasts," says DeLorenzo. "The bottom line is you just can't replace the experience of a traditional studio. But one thing Skillshare's really figured out is how to take the good things about in-person studio time, like real-time interaction, meeting your classmates, completing hands-on projects, and creating an experience around it in the digital world."

Becoming a good designer requires more than just mastering the tools, however — you also need to build social skills and a thick skin, says DeLorenzo. "Working with people is something you really need to do. I know some designers who didn't go to design school and they can't take criticism well. Long crits help prepare you for that, they help you separate yourself from the work. You're not an artist, you're a service."

Whether or not you take his class, DeLorenzo believes that the web is profoundly changing the way designers learn. "When I want to learn something I Google it," he says, and encourages students to reach out to their heros. "If you have a favorite designer you can just tweet at them and they'll probably respond — they're not movie stars."

Of course, no matter how plentiful web-based tools get, DeLorenzo says there are some things that can never be replaced. "Online course will never be able to replicate that design studio smell."